The Cerberus CMBS Opportunities Fund, as previously reported, is expected to invest in the most junior bonds of CMBS deals and to take short positions in certain bonds through the use of derivatives indices, such as the CMBX series.

Cerberus, which has more than $20 billion of assets under management, has not specified how much it plans to raise for the fund. The vehicle, which is seeking individual investments of as little as $100,000, is registered as a 506(b) offering, which enables it to solicit commitments from non-accredited investors, or those with less than $1 million of net worth or less than $200,000 in annual income, in addition to institutions and other accredited investors.

The company's CMBS investing is led by Scott Stelzer, who joined the firm in 2008 from Morgan Stanley, where he was a managing director with responsibilities that included managing CMBS trading.

During the third quarter, the company took down one private-label B-piece, that of WFRBS Commercial Mortgage Trust, 2013-C15, a $1.1 billion conduit that priced in August. The deal's B-piece was comprised of its three most junior bond classes, which had a total face value of $72 million. Cerberus bought them at a discount to par.

Comments? E-mail John Covaleski or call him at (267) 247-0112, Ext. 208.

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